Firmly Warns United States, Russia Says Has Power To Put All Enemies In Its Place

Russian President Vladimir Putin with Dmitry Medvedev. (Wikimedia Commons/Government.ru)

JAKARTA - Russia warned the United States on Thursday that Moscow had the power to put the world's leading superpower in its place, accusing the West of fomenting a wild Russophobic plot to destroy Russia.

Dmitry Medvedev, who served as president from 2008 to 2012, said the United States had fueled "disgusting" Russophobia in an attempt to force Russia to its knees.

"That won't work. Russia has the power to put all our impudent enemies in their place," said Medvedev, who currently serves as deputy secretary of the Russian Security Council.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, the United States and its allies in Europe and Asia have imposed sanctions on Russian leaders, companies and businessmen, cutting Russia off from most of the world economy.

President Vladimir Putin said what he called special military operations in Ukraine were necessary, because the United States was using Ukraine to threaten Russia, and Russia had to defend against the Ukrainian "genocide" of Russian-speaking people.

Ukraine itself says it is fighting for its existence and that Putin's claims of genocide are nonsense. The West says their claims of wanting to tear Russia apart are fiction.

Meanwhile, Russia says despite the sanctions, they can do well without what it considers a devious and decadent West led by the United States.

Russia says its efforts to forge ties with the West after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 are now over, and it will develop ties with other powers such as China.